On June 16, from 1 until 2 pm, our own Rachel Gibson will be speaking at a lunchtime event hosted by The Guardian. This is the first in a series of lunchtime events organised collaboratively by the University of Manchester and The Guardian. Tickets can be bought to attend the live-streamed event online, and ticket holders will also be able to view this event at a later time (on demand). 

The topic of this event is how to navigate misinformation in today’s complex, internationally-connected media landscape. In 1977 the Guardian created an elaborate April Fool’s Day hoax – a seven page travel supplement about a fictional island called San Serriffe – which fooled the nation. Forty years later, in a very different world, the Collins Dictionary 2017 word of the year was “fake news”. Today, a host of conspiracy theories and fabricated stories about coronavirus can spread rapidly across social media platforms. False claims about the US election led to the 6th January storming of the US Capitol and a social media ban for the former president.

Questions asked are:

• How can we as readers recognise misinformation and protect ourselves against fake news?
• How can the media defend traditional news values and what roles should big tech companies play in this?

Speakers also include Alex Hern, technology editor for The Guardian; Imran Ahmed, CEO of the Center for Countering Digital Hate; and Tom Phillips, former editor of Full Fact.

To book a ticket or to view more information, please visit this web page.

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